


The Doctor Vs. the Snugabaloo

by LizAnn_5869



Series: Small Beautiful Events are what Life is All About [25]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Baby Fic, F/M, Fluff and mild angst, Fluffy love sweetness, Kidfic, Parenthood, pregnancy fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:29:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24377281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizAnn_5869/pseuds/LizAnn_5869
Summary: Tentoo and Rose are adjusting to impending parenthood.  Jackie comes to the rescue.
Relationships: Metacrisis Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler
Series: Small Beautiful Events are what Life is All About [25]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/247264
Comments: 24
Kudos: 43





	The Doctor Vs. the Snugabaloo

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TenRoseForeverandever](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TenRoseForeverandever/gifts).



> This is a belated happy birthday to Tenandroseforeverandever. She prompted the story by posting a picture of a long body pillow called the Snugadoo and not long after we were wondering what would happen if Rose had one while pregnant. So this one’s for you, birthday buddy!

The Doctor awakened to the sound of Rose’s frustrated growl. He felt the mattress shift as she struggled to get up, mumbling to herself. 

“Y’okay?” he rasped.

“Sorry, yeah… need the bloody loo…” Rose sighed as she padded away. 

The Doctor watched her shadowy form disappear behind the en-suite door. She wasn’t quite waddling yet, but soon she would. He grinned at the thought, then immediately felt guilty for it. Obviously she was uncomfortable and unable to sleep, and here he was, comfortably snuggled under the duvet. He wouldn’t have an issue dozing back off. Rose, seven months pregnant with a very active (and very Doctorish, according to her) baby, would likely be sleepless again. 

For the most part, they’d reveled in her pregnancy, except for a few anxious days at the beginning. They had been concerned how the genetics of a human (with a little bit extra) and a Time Lord (who was half human) would combine. As it turned out, the answer was  _ brilliantly _ . Eight weeks in, they discovered they were having a girl who could apparently broadcast a strong telepathic signature. Ten weeks in, their baby TARDIS reached out to their daughter. “We’re a family of four already,” he’d told her, through joyous tears. 

Yes, the preceding weeks had been bliss. But now they’d apparently hit a bit of a bump (a seven-month sized bump, which was only going to get bigger) and Rose was exhausted. Exhausted, while he blissfully dozed off to the happy hum of their baby in his mind. 

The toilet flushed and the water ran in the sink. Before too long, Rose shuffled around to her side of the bed, and with a little groan she crawled into bed, turning over on her Torchwood OB-GYN prescribed left side, facing away from the Doctor.

“M’sorry you’re having problems sleeping, Rose,” he murmured.

Rose sighed. “Sorry I woke you up.”

“I’m sorry I-“

She interrupted, “Let’s stop apologizin’ and sleep. Or try to, anyway.”

He rolled onto his side, scooting closer to his wife. “Here, lean against me, and then you can use my…” The Doctor pulled the pillow out from under his head and plopped it in front of her abdomen. “Put it under your belly. That’ll help.”

“You won’t have a pillow!”

“I’ve slept in worse conditions. I get to be snuggled up against you, so how bad could that be?”

Rose chuckled. “Like that prison cell on Framanzia? You were quite a cuddler even back then.”

He grinned at the memory. “I was trying my best  _ not _ to be, and failing miserably, I’m sure.”

Rose wriggled around, placing the pillow and leaning against him. He placed his hand on her bump. When she settled, she murmured, “Yeah, kinda.” She placed a hand on top of his. “I got a snuggle, and I used your leather jacket as a pillow. I recall bein’ pretty happy.”

The Doctor gave a happy sigh and kissed Rose’s shoulder.  _ Okay, this will work. Good.  _

There was two minutes of silence. During that time baby Susannah realized Daddy was in close proximity and became very animated under his palm. He was always happy to sense her presence so he sent a wave of love back to her and while she couldn’t quite communicate back in the same way, he felt her joy. 

“You’re both wrigglin’ too much,” Rose grumbled. 

“Oh… I…” he spluttered, not sure if he meant to apologize or to defend his wriggliness. 

“M’glad you two are so happy. And I love bein’ able to feel both of you in my mind. But I still can’t sleep!”

He sighed in defeat. “What am I to do?”

“Since she really wants Daddy right now, you think you could… sing her a lullaby or somethin’? Honestly, I think she’s preparin’ us for the sleepless nights we’re gonna have when she’s born. Maybe we’ll never sleep again, and I just need to get used to that.”

He let go of her hand. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he let out a deep breath, trying to calm them all. He wished the TARDIS wasn’t being stroppy. There was a perfectly comfortable master bedroom there, but their toddler of a time ship was currently throwing a tantrum and she wouldn’t unlock her door. “I’ll try a lullaby. Just relax against me…”

Rose wriggled against him, and then groaned a bit. “Could we try a pillow behind my back? It would be a little more… cushioned.”

His wife wasn’t explicitly saying  _ Oi matchstick man _ , but the implication was such. So the Doctor, now feeling a bit less accommodating, rolled out of bed and stalked downstairs to the linen closet. He heard Rose grumbling behind him, saying he didn’t need to do that, but he was now feeling every bit as grouchy as the TARDIS. Unearthing two guest room pillows, he stomped back upstairs. 

Once he returned to bed, he placed a pillow between himself and Rose and the other one at his head. Rose rested against him, silently. 

Neither one of them really slept for the rest of the night, but at least Susannah enjoyed the telepathic lullaby.

***

At this point, working on the TARDIS was equal parts mechanical and diplomacy. The Doctor was still figuring out why she was being stroppy and growing more impatient and less diplomatic as the early morning wore on. The coffee at breakfast didn’t wake him up enough, which also annoyed him. Even after all this time, being slow to wake annoyed him. He wondered if it was a trait Donna passed along to him. 

After a while, the Doctor gave up. The TARDIS had turned her metaphorical nose up at him, and even prodding with the Sonic didn’t help. He chose to return to the kitchen to see if there was any more coffee in the pot. 

He entered through the back French doors and saw that there, indeed, was a little coffee left in the pot. Jackie had also popped in, he noticed. His mother- in- law was more than he could take on a day when everything was rubbing him the wrong way. Hoping to go unnoticed, the Doctor slipped into the kitchen area without a word.

“Mum, the OB said it was okay for me to have a little caffeine… I know yours didn’t like that, but remember that headache you had…” He saw Jackie shake her head. Rose sighed, resigned. 

_ Still having the same argument, I take it, _ the Doctor thought. Catching Rose’s attention, he rolled his eyes behind Jackie’s back. Rose’s lips quirked as she tried to suppress a smile.

“Well, at any rate, I think I solved your sleep problem. Sheila got one of these for her daughter Gabby, remember her? Had twins , and she was able to sleep better with one of these. If it worked for her with twins, it should work for you with just the one.”

The Doctor did his best to tune out the tale of

Gabby and the twins as he nodded a hello to his mother in law and grabbed a mug for some coffee. 

“Oh, there’s himself,” Jackie said in greeting, thrusting a large shopping bag at Rose. 

The Doctor took a big swig of the coffee, which had become decidedly less appealing since breakfast, and grimaced as he watched Rose remove a large plush object from the bag.

“It’s a Snugabaloo! See, the top part replaces your regular pillow, and your bump can rest on the long part. And your back is cushioned, too.” Jackie explained as Rose held up the huge U-shaped pillow. “You know… so it’s a little softer.” Jackie shot a brief, but meaningful look in the Doctor’s direction, and he immediately understood that Rose had disclosed the topic of last night’s conversation to her mother. His eyes narrowed.

He noticed Rose noticing. His wife rolled her eyes. It didn’t help his disposition o be at the receiving end of the eye-roll.

“I think Rose’s back is quite adequately cushioned,” he muttered.

Jackie glanced at him. “Okay, sweetheart,” she said, quite patronizingly. Quickly switching the subject, she went on, “After the baby comes you can sit up with the long part wrapped around your waist and use it as a nursing pillow. Gabby loves hers, ‘specially when both babies are goin’ at it at the same time.”

Rose squeezed the pillow. “It’s really cushy. Thanks, Mum! I will definitely try it out tonight. Or before that ‘cuz I’m gonna need a nap after last night.”

Jackie smiled proudly. “Well, hopefully I solved that problem for you. Just lookin’ out for my girls.”

Now, had the Doctor slept better, or at the very least, had enough caffeine to bring his brain back on line, he would have realized that what Jackie did was out of love, and not out of a need to prove she cared more than he did. However, as he was part-human Metacrisis with more than a dollop of Donna Noble, he found himself offended that his mother in law was insinuating such a thing. (The irony that Donna would likely agree with Jackie was not lost on him, but he did his best to ignore that.). 

He also felt unreasonably jealous over a pillow. 

Rose, Susannah, and the TARDIS were his world. His universe...his  _ multiverse,  _ and he didn’t take kindly to Jackie's implications. However, he needed the warning look Rose shot in his direction. Grabbing a banana, he stomped out, taking his lukewarm coffee with him. 

Over his shoulder, he heard Jackie mutter, “He’s got a hornet up his arse.”

***

As it turned out, a little coffee and a banana  _ -excellent source of potassium-  _ adjusted the Doctor’s attitude, and he was no longer jealous of a pillow once he had his little snack. Being tired and  _ hangry _ did nothing for his disposition. As much as he missed, and loved Donna, that was another personality trait he could’ve done without. 

The Doctor wandered back to the house after tinkering on some circuitry he planned to install once the TARDIS let him back in. The kitchen and lounge were dark. Jackie had gone back to the mansion, so that was a plus.

After some looking, the Doctor discovered Rose sound asleep in their bed. She’d removed her pillow and laid out the Snugabaloo. Rose currently rested on her left side, her abdomen lovingly cradled by the long arm of the cushion. The bed was inviting, and as much as he hated to take naps, he occasionally needed them now. Crawling into bed to join his wife, he noticed the Snugabaloo took up a bit more room than he’d expected. When he rolled to his side he discovered that the pillow’s other long arm was between him and Rose, and he had somewhat less space.  _ Thought this was a queen sized bed, _ he thought.  _ Should’ve gotten the king sized after all… _

He sighed heavily, remembering the reason for the queen sized bed was due to their bedroom being in an upstairs loft with slightly less space than their downstairs bedroom. The loft bedroom was cool, and they’d also liked the idea of a smaller bed for the snuggling opportunities. 

The Snugabaloo stood (or lay) squarely in the way of that.

_ Okay, fine, I’m jealous of a pillow. _

A second sigh escaped him. “Doctor?” Rose mumbled. “Time’sit?”

He realized what she was asking after a second. “Half two.”

She groaned. 

“Haven’t been asleep long, I take it?”

“‘Bout fifteen minutes.”

“Sorry about that.” He hesitated then asked, “How’s the pillow?”

Rose’s answering sigh sounded rather more satisfied than his. “S’ heavenly. Zonked out right away.”

He kissed her shoulder, then sat up. “I’ll leave you to it.”

Rose reached blindly behind her and grabbed his arm. “Stay,” she ordered. “Snugabaloo’s nice, but s’not you.” She looked back at him, blinking sleepily. “Mum was just tryin’ to help, you know.”

His cheeks reddened. “I do.” With some difficulty, Rose sat up and scooted against the headboard. 

“She likes to give pregnancy advice, and even if I don't agree, I listen. She’s done this twice. I haven’t done it once.”

He sighed, “I know, Rose. I’m not tryin’ to be jealous of your mum. And I know she’s not explicitly trying to say I’ll be rubbish at the whole fatherhood thing or that I can’t take care of the pair of you…”

Rose grasped his hand. “Doctor, I don’t think you’re jealous of my mum. Or a pillow…”

He sputtered, “Jealous of a pillow? How ridiculous…”

Rose merely smiled at him, then went on, “But I do think you’re tryin’ to make amends for things you feel like you didn’t do with your children back on Gallifrey.” 

The Doctor blinked, letting Rose’s words sink in. “Well… I… I suppose you have a bit of a point…Rose, I was a rubbish dad there.”

“You do your best for all of us, and I’m includin’ the TARDIS in that, by the way. You’re already a fantastic dad. You don’t have to prove to me how great you’re gonna be, because I already know. I believe in you.” She cupped his cheek, and he leaned up to give her a gentle kiss.

Well, there was only one thing he could say to the one person he’d always believed in: “I love you, Rose Tyler.”

“I love you, my Doctor. Now, can we maybe… take a kip?”

They burst into giggles at her request. “I think we could do that. I need to get used to sharing you with the Snugadoodle or whatever it’s called.”

Rose grinned as she lay back down on her left side. “Snugabaloo. You know, sounds kinda like hullabaloo?”

“Ah. Apparently I’m the one who failed at hullabaloo this time,” he said, grinning at Rose’s snort of laughter. He rolled to his side, stretching out his arm so he could rest his hand on her abdomen. Immediately Susannah reached out to him. Joyfully greeting his daughter, the Doctor missed what Rose muttered next. “Hmm?”

“Said you did just fine with the jiggery-pokery.” She chuckled sleepily.

“Minx,” he said, a laugh bubbling up. He sighed again, this time contentedly. “Probably shouldn’t talk that way in front of the baby.” Rose’s body shook with laughter. 

“You know, you might even find the Snugabaloo useful sometime,” Rose mumbled sleepily, settling in as close as she could.

Basking in Rose’s closeness and Susannah’s sweet telepathic babbles, the Doctor chuckled. “I’ll leave the Snugabaloo to you.”

***

Rose leaned against the steamy shower wall, breathing in the warm, humid air. She felt the tension in her shoulders melt away. Her eyes were gritty with sleep deprivation.  _ Not quite as intense as the dimension hopping days, but close.  _

Of course, in the dimension hopping days she didn’t have the Doctor, and that made all the difference in the world. This kind of exhaustion was so much better. She grinned as she turned the water off. Snagging a towel from the rack, she quickly dried off and dressed in her pajamas. 

After throwing her wet hair into a messy bun she hurried out to their bedroom, where she found the Doctor sitting on their bed, cradling their four week old daughter.

Rose stifled a giggle at the sight. Not only was the Doctor holding Susannah, he had the Snugaballoo wrapped around his waist like she would do when using it as a nursing pillow. 

“You’re finished already?” the Doctor said to Rose, using the same quiet voice he’d been using to lull the baby to sleep. “I was hoping you’d take a little more time for yourself. She was fussy but she’s okay now.”

Susannah was still awake, staring intently up at her father. Rose smiled and stretched out on the bed next to them. “S’okay. I love watchin’ the pair of you.”

The Doctor smiled down at Susannah. “Mummy thinks we’re pretty entertaining.”

“I do. What made you get the Snugabaloo, though?”

He glanced at her, smiling wryly. “Miss Susannah was making it very clear that she preferred your company to mine, even if she wasn’t hungry at the moment. So I thought… this might be the next best thing to Mummy’s arms.”

“So you used it to trick her into calming down? Not that I’m judgin’. Whatever works.”

The Doctor chuckled softly. “She also made it abundantly clear that she wasn’t tricked but she appreciated that the pillow has your scent on it and that was enough for her. She agreed to settle down, at least until the next feeding.”

“That’s our clever girl.”

“Quite right.”

“And her clever dad for coming up with that idea. See, you actually excel at Snugabaloo.”

The Doctor smirked. “Why, I believe you’re right, Rose Tyler.”

***

Over the next several years, the pillow got quite a workout. It became the cushion of choice for story time. Rose found out what Jackie’s friend already knew- the Snugabaloo was quite useful for twins when Jack and Jamie came along. Then, Stella was born, and even though the covering was showing a bit of age, needing to be fluffed a little more often, it worked quite well. 

One day, Rose found little clumps of stuffing littering the floor in Susannah’s TARDIS bedroom. Her oldest daughter and two year old Stella were launching themselves onto it, and a seam had finally burst. 

“You know, I would’ve expected this from your brothers,” Rose told the girls as she bundled it off to their room to repair it. But then the boys did get into something a little more serious, involving console wiring and an accidental relocation and quick recovery of the 1980’s, and fixing the Snugabaloo was all but forgotten.

Until a week after Stella’s third birthday, that is. The Doctor and Rose stared at each other, then they glanced at the medbay scanner again. Rose covered her gaping mouth in shock as the Doctor shook his head in wonder. “I suppose we’re going to have to restuff that Snugabaloo,” he finally stammered. “You think it’ll survive a fifth round?” 

She answered his question with one of her own. “Do you think we will?” They stared at each other, then burst out laughing. He placed his hand on her abdomen and she covered it with her palm. 

“I suppose we shall find out,” the Doctor proclaimed, leaning in to kiss his wife.


End file.
